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• coop
  coop

  noun

  an enclosure, cage, or pen, usually with bars or wires, in which fowls or other small animals are confined for fattening, transportation, etc.
• coop.
  coop.

  abbreviation

  cooperative.

coop

¹ American  

[koop, koop] / kup, kʊp /

noun

coops plural

1. an enclosure, cage, or pen, usually with bars or wires, in which fowls or other small animals are confined for fattening, transportation, etc.

2. any small or narrow place.

3. Slang. a prison.

4. Sometimes Facetious. a cooperative, especially the cooperative bookstore of a college or university.

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verb (used with object)

coops, present (3rd person singular) cooped, past participle, past cooping present participle

1. to place in or as if in a coop; confine narrowly (often followed by up orin ).

verb (used without object)

coops, present (3rd person singular) cooped, past participle, past cooping present participle

1. Slang. (of a police officer) to park and sleep inside one's patrol car while on duty.

idioms

1. fly the coop, to run off; depart abruptly; escape.

   We stopped to see my sister, but she'd flown the coop.

coop. ² American  

Or co-op

abbreviation

1. cooperative.

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coop ¹ British  

/ kuːp /

noun

1. a cage or small enclosure for poultry or small animals

2. a small narrow place of confinement, esp a prison cell

3. a wicker basket for catching fish

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verb

1. (tr; often foll by up or in) to confine in a restricted area

coop ² British  

/ ˈkəʊˌɒp /

noun

1. a cooperative, cooperative society, or shop run by a cooperative society

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coop ³ British  

abbreviation

1. a cooperative

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coop. ⁴ British  

abbreviation

1. cooperative

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coop More Idioms  

1. see fly the coop.

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Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• coops
  plural

Participles

• cooping
  present
• cooped
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• coop
  simple
• coops
  simple
• have cooped
  perfect
• has cooped
  perfect
• am cooping
  progressive
• are cooping
  progressive
• is cooping
  progressive
• have been cooping
  perfect progressive
• has been cooping
  perfect progressive

Past

• cooped
  simple
• had cooped
  perfect
• was cooping
  progressive
• were cooping
  progressive
• had been cooping
  perfect progressive

Future

• will coop
  simple
• will have cooped
  perfect
• will be cooping
  progressive
• will have been cooping
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of coop

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English coupe “basket,” perhaps from Scandinavian or ultimately from Latin cūpa “cask, tub” ( see cup ( def. )); cognate with Norwegian kaup “wooden can,” Old English cȳpa “basket”

Explanation

A coop is a small enclosed area or structure where chickens are kept. If you feel cooped up, you feel like you’re stuck in a small space, like a giant chicken in a tiny cage. A coop is where chickens get shelter from bad weather and predators. Without a hyphen, the word co-op, which is short for co-operative organization, turns into coop. That can be confusing to chickens because they don’t know if they will have meetings or a safe place to lay eggs. Coop comes from the Old English word cype, "basket" or "cask," with the Latin root cupa, "cask" or "tub."

Example Sentences

With your mortgage soon to be paid off and your kids flying the coop, you could supercharge your retirement savings.

From MarketWatch • May 14, 2026

The bird initially was enjoying time with the chickens, but by the next day he decided he had enough of his friends in the coop.

From BBC • Apr. 17, 2026

Don Knotts, “Mr. Chicken” himself, was ready to fly the coop out of L.A.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 26, 2026

You had an M.B.A. and were living in a chicken coop without running water.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 13, 2025

I have another coop to start after school, plus I have to call the science museum and see about borrowing their fur...

From "Wayward Creatures" by Dayna Lorentz